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PATENTED FEB. 23, 1904.

J. KEITH & W. W. WARDLE.

APPARATUS FOR DRYING WOOL, 6L0.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 22. 1903.

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PATBNTED FEB. 23, 1904. J. KEITH & w; w. WARDLE. APPARATUS FOR DRYINGWOOL, 8w

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 22, 1903. N0 MODEL. 4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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No. 753,200. 7 PATENTED FEB. 23, 1904.. J. KEITH & W. W. WARDLE.

APPARATUS FOR DRYING WOOL, 8w.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 22, 1903.

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No.753,200. I PATENI'ED-PEBi ZSQIQM.

' J. KEITH & WLW. WARDLE.

APPARATUS FUR DRYING WOOL, 8m.

APPLICATION nun mm. 22,1903.

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j V UNITED STATES Patented February 23, 1904:;

PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES 'KEITH.AND WILLIAM WINSHIP WARDLE, OF LONDON, ENGLAND, ASSIGNORS TO JAMES KEITH & BLACKMAN COMPANY, LIMITED, OF

LONDON, ENGLAND.

APPARATUS FOR DRYING WOOL, &0.

I SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 753,200, dated February 23, 1904.

Application and AugustZZ, 190a. $erialNo.170,407. lNomodel.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, JAMES KEITH, residing at 27 Farringdon avenue, and WILLIAM WIN- srnr WARDLE, residing at 32 Somerfield road, Finsbury Park, London, England, subjects of the King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, have invented certain new and useful Apparatus for Drying and Conditioning Wool or Like Fibrous Material, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has for its objectto provide apparatus for eifectually drying and conditioning loose wool or like fibrous material, more especially as it is delivered from a washing or dyeing machine.

The apparatus, which is intended for continuous treatment of the wool,diifers from that hitherto in use in that it provides for spreading and opening out the wool in its passage to the drying-machine, being thus adapted to present the material to the drying-currents of air in a condition in which it is more readily and uniformly acted on, owing to its being opened up and evenly distributed. Wool is delivered from the usual narrow washing or dyeing machine in such unequal masses that if directly carried into a drying-chamber the smaller pieces would be overdried before the larger masses would be acted upon to the same extent; but under our invention we provide for spreading the material over a larger area by making the drying apparatus much wider than the washing-machine and for opening up the wool by devices for partially drawing or pending it in'process of transference from the washer to the drier.

In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate the invention, Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation, Fig. 2 is a plan, partly in section, and Fig. 3 is a cross-section, of the improved wool-drying apparatus. Figs. 4, 5,

and 6 are diagrammatic views showing in side elevation three forms of devices employed for spreading and drawing out the wool prior to delivery into the dryingchamber.

The improved apparatus comprises a hopper of a width greater than that of the washing,

dyeing, or like machine from which the wool is delivered and into which hopper it is distributed by the delivery apparatus or otherwise. Extending down into the hopper is a creeper consisting of an inclined spiked travel ing band or bands which lift the wool out of the hopper and which, in conjunction with. combs or equivalent devices, serve to spread and draw out and partially card the wool while raising it and delivering it overhead onto a traveling band, which is arranged to carry the spread wool into a drying-chamber, whence after being acted onby heated air circulated by fans it is delivered at the farther end properly dried on conditioned.

The wool or other material is delivered from the washing or dyeing machine or from other source of continuous supply into a hopper a, of the full width of the drying apparatus, the

delivery when from a narrow washing-ma chine being preferably efifected by a traveling band 5, which drops it on a transverse traveling web 0 and from which it is discharged into the hopper a, partly by falling over the said web and in part by the action of apush-plate d, suspended over-the transverse web 0 at an angle to its line of travel, the said plate having a swinging movement imparted to it by levers d such that it evenly distributes the material into the hopper. From the hopper the material is raised to a higher level by means of a spiked creeper which, as shown by Figs. 1 and 4, is composed of an endless traveling band 2, of laths, carried round rollers e e and having on the laths projecting spikes which engage with the wool in the hopper a, the band being placed at a slight inclination from'the vertical, so that it raises the wool in an. approximately vertical stream or layer. The quantity of material carried up by the creeper is regulated by means of a swinging and adjustable knock ofi comb f, whose spiked edge as the comb swings engages with and throws down surplus wool into the hopper a. 'As the wool passes over the upper roller 6 of the creeper eit is engaged with the spikes of a second swinging knock-off comb g and thrown down on the farther side into the dryingchamber 6, the spikes of the knock-off comb longwooden or other casing of any desiredv length, has fitted within it a long endless traveling b and k, composed, preferably, of round wooden laths secured at each end to parallel chains or like supports carried round end pulleys or rollers is If, the band being supported against sagging by means of-side rails Z,

upon which run small pulleys Z on the chains or edges of the band k.

The wool is delivered from the creeper 0 onto this band is, which carries material continuously through the chamber while subjected to the action of a blast of heated air, the wool being delivered through a slit or opening 2" at the opposite end fully dried o'r conditioned.

For effecting the drying operation a fan or blower m draws air through a radiator 0 and delivers it in a heated state under the traveling band is, suitable baffles 0 being located in the base of the chamber to disperse the air as it enters. In the side of the chamber above the band a fan or fans n, of larger capacity, is or are fitted to draw off the air and redirect it through a passage 9, and so under the' laths of any loose fiben.

The temperature of the heater, the volume of air drawn or forced through it, and the speed of the traveling band may each or all be regulated to insure ample drying of the material without overheating.

In the modification of the creeper for spreading and opening up the wool shown at Fig. 5 a series of endless bands 6 6 6 carrying spikes or formed of carding-cloth, are employed and arranged to carry up the wool from the hopper a and partially draw or card it prior to delivery onto the traveling band is. One of these creeper-bands, e, is placed parallel to the others, 6 and 6 a convenient arrangement being to have the two bands 6 e in line, of which the upper one, 6 runs at a higher speed than the lower one, 6 while the third band, 6, in front and parallel to the others, runs at an intermediate speed. The wool is lifted from the hopper a by the lowest band, 0 and passes between the parallel bands 0 e e, by which it is gently opened up and drawn out and is finally delivered over the top of the upper band, 6 over a chute into the drying-chamber.

A knock-off or feed-regulating comb g is fitted in proximity to the lowest band, (2 to .throw down into the hopper a surplus wool carried up, and a' rotating dofling cylinder or comb g is fitted near the upper end of the top band, 6 to facilitate the delivery of the wool into the drying-chamber.

In a further modification of the creeper (shown in Fig. 6) a spiked drum 6 is mounted above the traveling band 6 which drum runs a little faster than the said band, a revolving clearer or comb 6 being arranged underneath the drum 6 and in turn running faster than said drum.

The improved apparatus is applicable not only for drying wool or like fibrous material after being washed or dyed, but also for drying wool as it is removed from hides in what is known as fell-mongering]? Having now described our invention, what we claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is'

1. For continuous treatment of wool and like fibrous material apparatus comprising the combination with a washing ma'chine, dyeing or like machine, and a drying-machine of greater breadth than said washing-machine, of means for spreading and opening out the material and automatically transferring it from said washing-machine to said dryingmachine, as described.

2. For continuous treatment of wool and like fibrous material apparatus comprising the combination with a washing-machine, a hopper of greater width than said washing-machine and a drying-machine of the'same width as said hopper, of devices for automatically distributing the material from said washingmachine equally throughout said hopper and devices for automatically opening out said material and delivering it in uniform masses to the drying-machine as described.

3. For continuous treatment of wool and like fibrous material apparatus comprising the combination with a washing-machine, a hopper of greater width than said washing-machine and a drying-machine of the same width as said hopper, of devicesfor distributing the material from the washing-machine uniformly throughout said hopper, devices for opening out and carding the material, means for delivering said material to a drying-machine and means for regulating the quantity of material regulating the quantity of material raised bysaid spiked band and a dryingchamber ineluding an endless traveling band onto which the wool is continuously fed to be dried and continuously delivered at the end of the drying-chamber as described.

5, For continuous treatment of wool from a washing or dyeing machine, apparatus comprising in combination a hopper, a traveling band and a transverse traveling web delivering the material to said hopper, and a push-plate for removing the material from said web, means for raising the wool from said hopper, means for throwing down surplus wool into the hopper, means for throwing off the wool from said receiving means onto the traveling band of a drying-machine, said traveling band delivering the conditioned wool continuously as described.

6. For continuous treatment of wool from a washing or dyeing machine, apparatus comprising in combination a traveling band receiving the wool from the washing-machine, a transverse traveling web beneath said band and receiving the material therefrom, a hopper of the same width as the drying-machine, a push-plate located over said traveling web, and means for operating said push-plate to distribute the material into a hopper, a creeper comprising an endless band of laths having projecting spikes and means for moving said band to raise the material from said hopper, a knock-off comb and means for swinging said comb for throwing down surplus wool into said hopper and aknock-oif comb for throwing off the raised wool, an endless band passing through a drying-chamber and receiving the wool and devices for causing said band to travel continuously through the drying-chamber to deliver the conditioned wool as described 7. For continuous treatment of wool the combination with a washing-machine of adrying-machine of greater width, a hopper of the same width as the drying-machine, a traveling band, a traveling web and a push-plate coopcrating to distribute the material from the washing-machine uniformly into said hopper, a spiked band for raising the material from said hopper, means for regulating the quantity of material delivered by said spiked band, an endless band passing through the-drying-machine, means for throwing down the material onto said band, means for moving said hand through the drying-chamber, means for heating said drying-chamber, and means for circulating air-currents through said chamber as and for the purpose set forth.

8. For continuous treatment of wool the combination with a washing-machine and a drying-machine of a hopper of the full width of said drying-machine, a traveling band delivering the material from the washing-machine, a transverse endless traveling web beneath said band and above said hopper, receiving the material, a push-plate at an angle to the line of travel of said web, levers for swinging said push-plate and assisting to distribute the material uniformly into said hopper, an endless traveling band of laths having projecting spikes for raising the material from said hopper, means for throwing down surplus material back into said hopper and means for throwing forward the wool to be treated into the drying-chamber, an endless band passing through said drying-chamber, means for supporting said band, and means for imparting to said band a continuous movement through the ,dry ing-chamber, means for heating said chamber and means for circulating air through said chamber as and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof we' have signed our names to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

JAMES KEITH. WILLIAM WINSHIP WARDLE.

Witnesses:

VVALLAGE CRANSTON FAIRWEATHER, J no. ARMSTRONG, Jr. 

